And like all great games, Soul Tide also has several aspects (unique or otherwise) that may require a bit of explanation for newer players, which is exactly what this article is for. In this guide we’ll cover Soul Tide’s several game modes, mechanics, and features — all while providing some tips on how to best play the game as a beginner along the way.
Starting Out (Rerolling)
You will be able to Evoke Dolls (Characters) and Verves (Cards) upon reaching a certain point in the tutorial. To reroll, you’re going to have to create duplicate email addresses. You’ll need to sign out of an email account and re-login to a new one to begin new rerolling cycles. Now, if you’re wondering about which Doll to reroll for, then worry not — you actually don’t have to. After all, Freesia, Virgina, Lilyiro, and Asami are all given to you for free at the beginning stages of the game, and all of them are the best characters for their roles. Ideally, your starting lineup should be:
Lilyiro (Single DPS & AoE Damage Dealer) Virgina (Healer) Freesia (Frontline Tank) Asami (Single-target Damage Dealer) Rin (replaceable Damage Dealer)
TIP: Instead of rerolling for Dolls, consider rerolling for Verves to equip your Dolls with. Any SSR-rarity Verves should do, but try to get at least one Verves that boosts a Doll’s DPS output. If you’d like to replace Rin in your lineup, then it is advisable to go for high-tier support Dolls like Corcher, Mako, Nicolette, or Cabana.
Game Modes
To inform you about Soul Tide’s several game modes, here’s a brief overview of each of them — along with a few tips on how to get through them as fast and easily as you can.
Graveland Stages (Realms)
Graveland Stages are divided into Chapters and are Soul Tide’s version of campaign stages or story stages. You can progress through the main questline here, and you’ll be able to unlock certain features in the game if you clear enough stages in Graveland. You can also farm materials that you can use to power up your Dolls in Graveland (via Sigil Upgrading), so you’re going to have to be clearing as much of it as you can. TIP: Try to clear Stage 3-6 as soon as possible. You’ll unlock all game modes by then, not to mention you’ll also be able to gather enough Player EXP to level up and increase your max Sanity. To get through Graveland Stages easily, all you need to do is make sure that your Dolls meet the required CP for each stage. Also, keep an eye out for HP-draining traps within each stage (e.g. Spikes, Poison, and Suicide Monsters) and avoid them like the plague.
Abyss Rift (Realms)
The Abyss Rift is arguably the most fun game mode in Soul Tide. Fortunately, it just so happens that it’s also the most important game mode to clear daily. You get a maximum of 5 tries to clear this game mode. 1 try and 30 Stamina is consumed every time you enter and 1 try is refreshed every 24 hours. Here, you are thrown into increasingly hard battles before facing a very tough boss at the end. Fret not, however, as Runes can help you out by boosting your team’s overall stats and damage output! Doll Shards are featured as drops in the Abyss Rift, so make sure to prioritize clearing this game mode every day as soon as you unlock it. TIP: While playing Abyss Rift, all you need to remember is that choosing 1 or 2 sets of Runes is better than spreading it out. For example, you’ll likely be better off choosing 6 Bleed Runes instead of 2 Single Runes, 2 Mission Runes, and 2 Shock Runes. Your choice of Runes depends on your team composition, but in general, Bleed and Single Runes are among the best out there. Try to get 6 Runes for at least one of these two for max Set Effects.
Drills (Trials)
On the Trials Page, you’ll be able to find all four of the Drills — Martial Drills, Magical Drills, Tactic Drills, and Battle Drills. If you’d like to know the drops for each stage, simply refer to the table below: You can unlock Drill Stages by leveling up your Player Level. The higher it is, the higher the Stage you can unlock. And of course, the higher the Stage you can clear, the more materials and resources you’ll be able to farm per each Wipe. TIP: You need to unlock and clear these Drills as soon as you can. After all, they will provide you with the necessary materials to strengthen your Dolls. Also, make sure to clear and Wipe (auto-clear) the highest possible stage you can clear as soon as they’re unlocked to maximize your daily farming output.
Trial Tower (Trials)
In the Trial Tower, you must battle increasingly dangerous opponents as you climb ever upwards. Of course, this also means that you’ll be able to gain increasingly prestigious rewards every time you go up in floors. The best rewards are mostly reserved on every 5th Floor (e.g. 5F, 10F, 15F, 20F, etc.), but they’re also guarded by tough opponents so watch out. TIP: Be sure to take advantage of the Weakness list that’s written on each floor’s description (as shown in the image above). You can swap out Dolls or their Skill Sets using this list to make your team much more effective against the enemies on each floor.
Illusory Limbo (Trials)
Map-wise, the Illusory Limbo is by far the largest game mode in Soul Tide. Here, you must navigate through traps and obstacles to reach the exit — or at least until your Lanterns are fully consumed. The amount of steps and actions you can do is limited by your lanterns. Lanterns can be found and recharged in the Illusory Limbo. TIP: Your Lanterns are very limited, so try to observe and map out your movements first before committing to a specific route. Also, keep in mind that triggering traps will consume some of your precious Lanterns. Avoid them at all costs.
Overlord Invasion (Trials)
Overlord Invasions will see you battling different Boss Monsters every week, and each of them has unique Skills Sets, Stats, and Weaknesses. Every time you kill a Boss, it’ll be replaced by a stronger and tougher Boss. The stronger the Boss you can kill, the better your rewards are at the end of each cycle. TIP: This game mode is designed for more experienced players, but clearing as many bosses as you can as soon as it’s unlocked is still advisable. As always, try to take advantage of the Boss’s Weakness by adjusting your team and the skill sets of your Dolls appropriately.
Soul Tide Combat Guide
The Combat in Soul Tide is pretty straightforward. There’s a total of 20 Rounds, and the higher the unit’s speed stat is, the faster they can get their turn in each round. The game also has a 4-skill System which allows your Dolls to either do a Normal Attack/Normal Support Skill or use stronger Skills that apply Buffs, Debuffs, or Status Ailments by consuming SP. There’s also the Guard System which allows your enemies to mitigate the damage done to them. The amount of Guard an enemy has is displayed in the shield icon beside their HP Bar. TIP: You can break an opponent’s guard by attacking them with an element they’re weak against. Upon reaching 0 Guard, your opponent will be easier to kill or neutralize via Status Ailments. When battling tough enemies, be sure to time your Guard Break correctly as it only lasts for 2-3 turns. It’s best to break an opponent’s guard at the start of each round for maximum damage.
Powering Up Characters
You can strengthen your Dolls/Characters by doing the following:
Leveling Up Dolls Leveling Up Verves Limit-Breaking Verves Upgrading Sigils Upgrading Skills Unlocking Memories Ascension (Unlocking Traits for Dolls)
While we’re not going too “in-depth” for each method listed here, the only thing you have to keep in mind is that clearing Drills regularly will allow you to strengthen your Dolls as often as possible. Acquiring Doll Shards for Ascension and unlocking Sigils are also important, but leveling up your Dolls and Verves with the materials you’ve acquired from Drills should always be priority #1. TIP: Try to prioritize Damage Dealers over other units when it comes to investing your resources. Doing so will make your team much more effective and dangerous. Also, equip only the appropriate Verves for Dolls with specific roles (e.g. Healing Verves for Healers, Attack Verves for Damage Dealers, and Guard Verves for Tanks).
In-Game Shops
Soul Tide has a lot of Shops. But if you’re F2P, the only ones should be interested in are the Gift Shop, the Housing Shop, and the Redeem Shop. The Gift Shop and the Housing Shop are more for the semi-casual aspects of the game (Home, Presents, Dating, etc.). On the other hand, you may want to visit the Redeem Shop more often because it allows you to exchange your limited currencies like Orbs and Medals for fantastic rewards. TIP: It all comes down to personal preference, but it may be wise to buy all the gifts in the Gift Shop that are purchasable with Coins. This will help you raise your affinity with your Dolls much faster, therefore letting you Date them more often. By extension, this will allow you to unlock their Memories much quicker.
Your Home
Your Home is where you can house all of your Dolls and put your interior designing skills to use. Of course, you can also gain nice rewards such as Coins, Wisps, and Crystals via the Home System simply by sending out Dolls on Jobs regularly. You can only do so 4 times each day. Alternatively, you can also get Coupons here which you can exchange in the Redeem Shop for other more prestigious rewards. TIP: Be sure to Upgrade your Lab, your Kitchen, and your Crafting Room as often as you can. Doing this will let you farm more materials and resources every single day. Unlocking and decorating Dorms is also highly recommended since you’ll be able to send out more Dolls on Jobs if you do so. This increases the rewards you get per each Job cleared.
The Sanity System
The “stamina” in Soul Tide is instead referred to as Sanity. It’s consumed every time you clear a Stage in the Delve Page. A point of Sanity refreshes every 10 minutes, and you can only refresh 100 points of Sanity once per day by using 100 Crystals. TIP: Unless you’re willing to spend $5 for the Tome of Grace, it’ll be wise to ration out your Sanity throughout your playing sessions. Just be sure to leave 30 Sanity for Abyss Rift every day. If you want free Sanity Point refreshes, you must log in within specific time slots for the rewards Alina’s Stove. You can get up to 100 free Sanity Points if you time your logins correctly.
Soul Tide Tips & Tricks
To make your gaming experience in Soul Tide much easier and more enjoyable, here are a few tips to keep in mind.
Pay Attention to Your Dolls
Feeding your Dolls with Leveling Materials isn’t enough if you want to truly utilize their full potential in battle. After all, you also need to feed them with lots and lots of attention — preferably in the form of headpats, Dates, and Gifts. Doing so will let you unlock their Memories which gives you extra Crystals and your Dolls a lot of Stat bonuses!
Do Your Dailies & Weeklies
This one’s pretty much a given for avid gacha game fans, but I’m reiterating this for newer players who’d like to play this game for the long term. Clearing all of your Daily and Weekly Missions consistently is by far the best thing you can do for your account in the long run, and this much is true whether you’re F2P or a massive whale. Simply put, you just gain too many important rewards such as Crystals and Player EXP to disregard these two. This is why you should always remember to complete them 356 days a year!
When in Doubt, Follow the Trainee Quest
If you’re stuck and don’t know how to progress further, all you need to do is visit the Trainee Quests for clues. Your Trainee Quests are divided into 4 Quests per day. Clearing all of the Quests will give you tons of Crystals and Vouchers, so there’s really no reason to ignore them. Of course, you can still do the quests at your own pace and either clear them in advance or clear them later if you feel like your team isn’t strong enough.
Keep Clearing Graveyard Stages to Level Up
The only “consistent” methods of obtaining Player EXP are clearing your Daily/Weekly Quests and progressing through the story in the Graveyard. Keep in mind that the more you level up your account, the higher the maximum level of your Dolls and Verves is. Not only that, but you can also increase the maximum value of your Sanity every time you level up your account. (Note: more Sanity = more resources = more fun).
Recommended P2P Pack: Tome of Grace
If you don’t mind dedicating some of your IRL moolah to Soul Tide every month, the best and most cost-effective pack you can buy is the Tome of Grace. This pack will give you 30 Lunarite (one-time) and 100 Sanity per day for 30 days. It’s located in the Monthly Store along with the Lunar Pass. The main attraction here isn’t the Lunarite, of course, but rather the Sanity you’d get – which will allow you to farm a lot more resources per day.
